After twelve jurors and three alternate jurors were selected, testimonies began on Wednesday in the murder trial involving two Orange County teens in 2022.
Issiah Ross is facing two counts of first-degree murder in connection with the deaths of Lyric Woods and Devin Clark. He has pleaded ‘not guilty’.
The trial was off to an emotional start, with some of the victim’s family members unable to sit through the opening statements in which the prosecution described how the bodies of Lyric and Devin were found in a wooded area off Buckhorn Road.
Lyric Woods’ mother, Elizabeth Cannada, was the first family member to take the stand. She shared how her daughter said ‘goodnight’ to her around 11 p.m. on Sept. 16, 2022. She said Lyric wasn’t in bed the next morning.
“It’s not like her to worry me. That was the last thing she would want to do,” Cannada said.
Dexter Clark, the father of Devin Clark, was also emotional on Wednesday. He said it’s not unusual for Devin to leave with his friends, but when he tried calling his phone, it was going straight to voicemail.
“I didn’t want to think nothing was wrong,” Clark said.
Ross was arrested in October 2022 in Delaware.
Investigators talk evidence
After an afternoon recess, the trial continued with witnesses from the Orange County Sheriff’s Office, including one of the lead investigators, Zachary Baldwin.
Baldwin described in detail some of the evidence, including explaining the crime scene to the jury. A car was also described as evidence, which they processed using “luminol.”
“Inside the vehicle, there was a very large spot on the roof that was very bright blue,” Baldwin said.
He also described some of what they saw outside the car, including a ‘red streak’.
The trial continues tomorrow morning in Hillsborough.
Expert witnesses are also expected to testify, including an FBI special agent and a forensic scientist.
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